Russell Crowe
Jennifer Connelly
Ray Winstone
Emma Watson
Logan Lerman
Douglas Booth
Anthony Hopkins

Darren Aronofsky
Ari Handel

138 mins.
Action, Adventure, Drama
March 28, 2014

Rated PG-13 for violence, disturbing images and brief suggestive content. (MPAA)

“Noah” is definitely a Darren Aronofsky film: It challenges conventional wisdom. Yet it’s respectful and thought-provoking at the same time. Its commentary on contemporary humanity and its perspective on Biblical events may push some viewers away. Some Christian and Jewish leaders, thankfully, have supported the film. Others, including Creationist Christian leaders, have criticized it for its use of “Creator” instead of “God,” its strong environmentalist message, and its inclusion of ideas from the Theory of Evolution. Check this film’s Wikipedia page for information regarding some of these reactions (that page may not give you the full scope of the reaction, though). “King” Tubal-Cain’s corrupting thoughts (they corrupt Ham especially) echo many sentiments that are held today. Also, Noah (played with a quiet intensity by Russell Crowe) is presented as straightforward, absolute, and unflinching until the very end. He alone knows what God wants him to do. His decisions weigh heavily on his family. This leads to a bold scene toward the end of the film from Jennifer Connelly as Noah’s wife. Connelly really goes for it in this scene as she holds Noah accountable for threatening to kill his newborn grandchildren.

Yet while this film challenges, it’s still faithful to the spirit of the Old Testament. (The Old Testament is a lot like Noah himself.) It’s not a direct depiction of biblical events, though. The Noah story, as presented in four paragraphs in Genesis in the Bible, wouldn’t support a feature film of any substance or appropriate length. But this film actually winds-up being too long when all is said and done. “Noah” is at its best when it reconciles the biblical account with telling a story with more complete causality. The additions to the story are there to fill in the gaps and to explain how things happened. The story is still implausible, but the dots are connected more fully. The events leading up to the flood shift between gentle moments and brutal moments. It’s a delicate shift that Aronofsky pulls off, for the most part. However, that shift holds the film down a bit. It doesn’t get a chance to soar. There are moments of wonder (Noah’s visions and the use of black shadows to depict Cain’s murder of Abel, for instance), but they are interspersed with the more mundane events of Noah’s life. Those ordinary events don’t come across as boring, though.

Unlike Aronofsky’s “The Fountain,” which many loathed (I loved it), this film doesn’t reach the feverish heights that this director is capable of. The effects are good. At times, this film looks like an adult storybook with superb time-lapse photography. At other times, it looks a bit like something from “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy. The Watchers, angels who disobeyed God to come to Earth as protectors of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden and were turned to Rock as a consequence, look like rock cousins of the Ents (or like a blend of The Rock Biter from “The NeverEnding Story” and the Ents). The explanation of this is better than you may think: When the Watchers crashed to Earth, the heat from their angelic bodies caused the earth to melt and then form rock around their bodies. They are this film’s biggest deviation from its source material. Their battle with Tubal-Cain (played with focus and intelligence by Ray Winstone) and his army is very similar to the Ent battle in the “Lord of the Rings” trilogy.

Also, that battle marks the moment when things start to feel ordinary, and the film starts to lag. The moments on the Ark and afterward don’t have the same sense of wonder as the previous events. One exception is Noah’s re-telling of the Biblical events that precede the film. Aronofsky reconciles the material from the Bible with the Theory of Evolution beautifully.

Another problem is that the ending section of the film is too long. A shorter ending may have kept things from dragging. Furthermore, some of the diction could have been clearer (especially from Crowe and Winstone); but that’s not a major gripe.

Overall, this is an interesting film with some compelling moments. This is one of my least favorite films of Aronofsky’s (along with “Pi”), but it’s still pretty good. I know what he was trying to accomplish, and he pulled it off for the most part. I don’t think that he’s capable of making a bad film, because he’s a thoughtful visionary.

Verdict:Pretty Good

About: (Source: noahmovie.com)

Russell Crowe stars as Noah in the film inspired by the epic story of courage, sacrifice and hope. Directed by visionary filmmaker Darren Aronofsky.